Articles with the topic: stocks

I have a problem with snoring. To be more accurate, Mary Kay (and anyone else trying to sleep in my zip code) has a problem with my snoring. According to her, the malady presents itself primarily when I’m sleeping. Even though I’m in sleep mode less than 30% of the day, in the spousal area, I’m like most husbands—I’m an ardent practitioner of continuous quality improvement. The Japanese call this process kaizen and, after seeing how well kaizen has worked for Toyota, I can’t stop my relentless pursuit of husbandry perfection. As such, within mere decades of learning how much my snoring bothered MK, I literally leaped at the opportunity to schedule a sleep study. (more…)

Earlier this month, Mary Kay and I joined some of her family members down in Sanibel Island, Florida. I hadn’t been to Sanibel since my senior year of college. On the night before spring break, some friends and I were gathered at a local establishment for an evening of very clearheaded thinking. We decided that none of us wanted to spend our last spring break in Minnesota.

The next morning, we piled into my buddy’s parents’ Ford County Squire station wagon and pointed it in the direction of Florida. Someone had a connection to a condo on Sanibel and we had a car with faux wood side panels. What could possibly go wrong? (more…)

We’re back in the U.S.A., I think. It’s not quite the place I remember leaving six months ago. But lately things are changing faster than a campaign promise, so I better write this letter quickly before its contents are obsolete. For readers looking for a funny lead-in, there’s not really too much wit to be found in what’s happening.

I have been going back and forth on this month’s editorial and realizing that I was trying to be too comprehensive. What I’ve decided to do is address some pressing issues, get it out, and then move forward with more in-depth analyses and thoughts. (more…)

This is an optical illusion I drew in 1980. It's the closest I could come to illustrating what the TBK-2430 looked like once I had assembled it.

Introduction

It was the Adirondack chairs all over again ((You may remember from last month’s letter that my 1991 effort to assemble Adirondack chairs has remained an ongoing source of humor for our neighbors, Jenni and Richard.)) . Mary Kay had purchased a table that required assembly.

I am curious about how concerned you are about the Fed budget deficit. The world seems upside down when the Republican administration and Congress are not up in arms about the ever growing deficit.

I can understand during an economic downturn that rolling back the tax tables is a good short term stimulus. The thinking is the lost tax revenue can be made up once the economy is in recovery and sustaining growth, taxes can go back to where they were.

The US economy from 2004 to the current moment is in a recovery/growth mode when the tax shortfall should be being made up. Yet the proposed budget has a larger deficit ($400 billion) than last year.

Further the President is determined to make the temporary cuts permanent.

What am I missing that the Republicans see? It seems to me the world has been turned up side down and as a Conservative thinker I am scratching my head…….

I referred him to Empire of Debt: The Rise of an Epic Financial Crisis by Bill Bonner and Addison Wiggen. This book zeros in like a laser on this reader’s concern and puts our predicament today into historical context. It heaps scorn equally on Democrats and Republicans and the authors do so with biting wit and beautiful writing. Upon finishing this book, I immediately started reading it again from page one. It captures a great many of the ideas and concerns I am trying to convey through this letter.

Peter L. Bernstein is truly one of the living legends in finance today. His book, Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk, traces the history and understanding of financial risk from 1200 to today. It really is a “remarkable story” and should be on the bookshelf of everyone who is serious about understanding finance and economics. As John Kenneth Galbraith (Professor of Economics Emeritus, Harvard University) says:

With his wonderful knowledge of the history and current manifestations of risk, Peter Bernstein brings us Against the Gods. Nothing like it will come out of the financial world this year or ever. I speak carefully; no one should miss it.

I’ve mentioned John Mauldin many times in the past and it’s time to do it again. John publishes a free weekly letter that I never miss. It requires registration, but I never receive junk mail as a result of having registered. His latest letter, Preparing for a Credit Crisis, is reason enough to sign up. In this latest missive, John gives us an up-to-the minute overview of the problems and costs facing Europe, the increasing likelihood of a U.S. (global) recession, the outlook for another 2008-style credit crisis and what the average investor might want to think about doing in the face of all of this. Read more…

Debts, Deficits and the Demise of the American Economy by Peter Tanous and Jeff Cox is about as close to the book I would write right now as I can imagine. It explains today’s economic mess and the unfolding financial crisis in straightforward language that doesn’t require a degree in economics.

A number of subscribers forwarded this video to me and it’s making the rounds in financial circles. If you’re still unclear about the phenomenon I refer to as “Queasing,” this should clear up any questions. Warning: After watching this video, you may not be able to hear the name Ben Bernanke without wanting to call him “The Bernank.” It’s like one of those songs that gets stuck in your head. If you like the absurd, I think you’ll like “Quantitative Easing Explained.”

“...an investor who proposes to ignore near-term market fluctuations needs great resources for safety and must not operate on so large a scale, if at all, with borrowed money. Finally, it is the long-term investor, he who promotes the public interest, who will in practice come in for the most criticism, wherever investment funds are managed by committee or boards or banks. For it is the essence of his behavior that he should be eccentric, unconventional and rash in the eyes of average opinion. If he is successful, that will only confirm the general belief in his rashness, and if in the short run he is unsuccessful, which is very likely, he will not receive much mercy. Worldly wisdom teaches that it is better for reputation to fail conventionally than to succeed unconventionally.”

The opinions as to portfolio allocation and specific investment vehicles contained herein are solely the opinions of the author and are not intended to be specific recommendations which would be suitable for every investor. The suitability of any specific investment or recommendation is dependent upon many subjective factors and characteristics of the individual investor including, but not limited to, particular investment objectives, risk tolerance, investment horizon or timeline, net worth, overall portfolio allocation and income needs. Specific investments may be suitable for some investors and yet unsuitable for others due to different needs and objectives. All readers should carefully consider their individual objectives and needs and should consult with their investment and financial advisor as to the suitability of any particular investment. The author specifically disclaims any liability or responsibility for any losses, which may result from any investment or allocation referenced herein.